El proyecto Unoficcial Tourism se quiere incrustar desde la economía de medios,
desde el ‘háztelo tu mismo’, dentro de los mecanismos creados por las industrias
de la cultura y del turismo. No deja de ser ésta una labor de parasitismo, de
habilitar estructuras paralelas a las oficiales haciendo uso de espacios e infraestructuras públicas, para poder generar así otras narrativas sobre la ciudad de
Madrid. Se trata de trasladar la idea de ‘fanzine’ al terreno de la difusión turística,
creando una ‘oficina de turismo underground’. Creándola con recursos que pueden estar al alcance de cualquier ciudadano. ¿El fin? Ofrecer a los consumidores
culturales foráneos –léase ‘turistas’- una serie de itinerarios turísticos distintos a
los habituales. Porque de lo que se trata es de ofrecer otras opciones, romper ‘la
norma’, mostrar otras formas de leer la realidad, la ciudad.
The project Unofficial Tourism aims, by economising means and based on a
‘do-it-yourself’ philosophy, to be a part of the mechanisms created by the culture
and tourism industries. Obviously, this is an act of parasitism, utilizing instead
of enabling structures parallel to the official ones by using public spaces and
infrastructures in order to generate other narratives of the city of Madrid. It
is a matter of transferring the ‘fanzine’ idea to the field of tourism promotion,
creating an ‘underground tourist office’. And creating it with resources that can
be within any citizen’s reach. For what purpose? To offer consumers of culture
–ie. ‘tourists’- a series of routes that are different from the most common. The
point is to offer alternatives and break with convention, provide other ways of
reading’reality and the city.

LUMINOSOS DE NEóN

NEON SIGn ADVERTISING.

Durante casi todo el siglo XX los letreros luminosos comerciales de Throughout most of the 20th Century, commercial neon sign were a
neón constituyeron un símbolo de desarrollo de las ciudades occi- symbol of development in Western cities. Yet their uncontrolled prodentales. Pero su proliferación incontrolada supuso tal apoteosis de liferation led to such an apotheosis of the aesthetics of excess that it
la estética del exceso, que acabó propiciando la reacción de unas ended up forcing a reaction from modern institutions obsessed with
instituciones contemporáneas obsesionadas por el control de cual- controlling public expressions of individuality. Today, flagship builquier manifestación pública de individualidad. Hoy en día, los edifi- dings and aesthetic eccentricity are the privilege of an administracios emblemáticos y la excentricidad estética son privilegio de una tion that dictates expressive rules following visual canons that tend
administración que dicta normas plásticas desde un canon visual que to standardise our environment under a regulatory legitimacy that is
tiende a uniformar nuestro entorno bajo una legitimidad regulado- more political than artistic. In short, garish tastes and formal aberrara más política que artística. En definitiva, el gusto estridente y las tions are only acceptable if imposed by the city council. In Madrid,
aberraciones formales son sólo admisibles si se imponen desde el the remodelling of Puerta del Sol in 1986 meant the beginning of
ayuntamiento. En Madrid, la remodelación de la Puerta del Sol en the end of the reign of neon sign . The pieces currently remaining
1986 supuso el comienzo del fin del reinado de los neones. Las piezas in the city survive precariously under the administration’s spotlight,
que se conservan actualmente en la ciudad sobreviven precariamente which plan their disappearance with a framework of regulations that
en el punto de mira de la administración que proyecta su paulatina are gradually plunging the city into the anodyne uniformity of frandesaparición mediante un entramado de normativas que poco a poco chises. This tour aims to draw attention of visitors to certain plastic
van sumiendo a la ciudad en la uniformidad anodina de las franquicias. elements that are so distinctive of the essence of this metropolis that
Este recorrido pretende captar la atención del visitante sobre unos most of them are practically invisible for the citizens who are so
elementos plásticos que son tan definitorios de la esencia de la urbe used to their presence.
que, en su gran mayoría, casi resultan invisibles al ciudadano acostumbrado a su presencia.
IANA HERREROS
MAURO ENTRIALGO Y ADR

On Callao square, on the curved corner on
top of the Carrión building, better known as
the Capitol building, is the location of this wellknown neon sign, probably the one with the
greatest prestige thanks to it being frequently
featured in television and films.

The Carrión building was built in the 1930’s
with the goal of it being a multipurpose site. It
would house luxury apartments, a hotel, a night
club, restaurants, and even a Seltzer water factory. The novelty was to be found in its ground
floors: a cinema seating nearly 2000 people,
the Capitol cinema.

The hotel was built in 1912 on site of former
palace of the Duques de Medinaceli. Two years
later it was awarded a prize by the council of
Madrid for the best construction. It has been the
venue par excellence of major social, political
and cultural events throughout the 20th Century. A red neon sign crowns its main façade.

This omnipresent figure, installed on a high
roof behind the Arab House, is outlined in the
sky over this Neomudejar-style building, creating an interesting contrast which is a visual
reference point for night traffic from the Puerta de Alcalá.

The Grassy building is the hallmark prow rising between Gran Vía and Alcalá Street. The
neon signs of watch brands that have been a
main feature on its façade over the last half
a century illustrate the commercial history of
the family jeweller’s occupying its ground floor.

Installed in 1935, it survived the national bombings during the Civil War, the order to remove
neon signs from the square by Mayor Arias
Navarro in the 60s and the remodelling of the
square in the 80s. In the end, the city council
had to bow to the evidence, and today it holds
the rank of a monument.

This typical squid sandwich bar in the area of
Atocha was opened in 1961 following the trail
of another beer hall with the same name successfully in operation since 1952 on Eloy Gonzalo Street in Chamberí. It is shabby, dirty and
likable; in other words, typically Madrilenian.
Its neon sign is a city icon.

One of the very few examples of mute commercial neon signs in Madrid is located inside this
legendary rock and roll bar opened in 1985
and which has been the setting for many films
and television series.

A building planned between 1925 and 1927 by
José Miguel de la Quadra Salcedo, its ground
floor housed a coffee house in the American
style of the time, Café Zahara. One of the few
historic cafeterias on that street that have
survived the absolute conquest of the area by
multinational catering franchises.

Opened in 1923, it holds the title of the oldest
German restaurant in Madrid. Given its proximity to the Congress, it is frequented by Members of Parliament. It was very popular among
the community of Germans exiled after World
War II who in the 40s were welcomed in our
country during the Franco regime.

Urban planning reports usually conclude that
Preciados Street is one of the thoroughfares
with the greatest population density worldwide and, at the same time, the country’s most
expensive shopping area. Dozens of establishments with special opening hours crowd
around this area of heavy tourist traffic.

Recently, Montera Street was converted into
a pedestrian zone in a final attempt by the city
council to clean up an area which the Mayor
described as a “source of degradation”. Legend has it that in this same stretch lived a
‘montera’ of great beauty, possibly the wife
of one of Felipe II’s monteros (masters of the
hunt). Whenever this lady went out for a stroll,
the crowd she drew was such that the authorities had to intervene to keep the peace.

URBAN ART

Despite its ephemeral nature, it is sometimes possible to track
urban art, at least in Madrid. And street work is not all: aside from
commissions from shops and bars, and crossing paths, somewhat
furtively, on a few walls full of activity, with pieces that have survived thanks to their discretion or their history, urban artists also
move their interventions to galleries, shops and other venues. Either outdoors or indoors, Nuria, Eltono, 3ttman, Trabajos en la
calle, Santiago Morilla, E1000, Alberto de Pedro, Frágil, Remed
or the legendary Muelle, are just a few examples of the street art
we can find almost unwittingly in downtown Madrid. The route
proposed here, outlined from north to south, from Malasaña to
Lavapiés, merely aims to establish a few starting points, but you
can go much further: just watch the walls.
GUILLERMO DE LA MADRID

(Outdoors 24h)
The Tupperware façade, one of the most emblematic bars in Malasaña, is a collective piece
orchestrated by 3ttman with the collaboration
of Eltono. Inside you will find a mural by Mauro
Entrialgo.

Hours: Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays
from 11 pm to 3 am.
Several years ago, the artistic partners Eltono and Nuria were commissioned to paint the
walls of the main rectangle in Oui. The bar’s
dim lighting does not prevent appreciating works of which there are barely any examples left
in the streets.

(Outdoors 24h)
Eltono, 3ttman and Remed are three Frenchspeaking artists who work in Madrid. The latter two often work together, including on piece
on Luna Street number 5, a wall with a long
history of urban art interventions.

(Outdoors, 24h)
The mural decorating the façade of La Maison
de la Linterne Rouge, a former brothel of Ballesta Street turned into a fashion shop, houses
a plentiful group of magical beings and oriental
characters created and drawn in black and
white by Santiago Morilla and E1000.

(Outdoors 24h)
The Muelle on Montera Street is a part of the
history of graffiti in Madrid, in the heart of the
city. This piece by the most famous graffiti artist of Madrid has survived city works, pollution
and even its author, who died in 1995.

Hours: nighttime.
At the beginning of Lavapiés street, a small
mirror placed next to a lamppost reflects on
the opposite wall the amplified shape and, lightshape, a tuning fork. This is Eltono’s light piece,
an original proposal outside the usual forms
of urban art.

(Outdoors, 24h)
Over the last few years, the grey wall on Jesús
y María, 14 has become a meeting point for
many urban artists: Blu, Trabajos en la calle,
Sakristan or Madrid Poster Art have turned
it into a living space with continuous activity.

Thursdays to Saturdays from 10:30 am to
2:30 am, Sundays from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm.
Museo de la Radio lives up to its name: dozens
of old radios fill a significant part of the inside
of this bar in El Rastro. The rest, especially the
spectacular toilets, is covered by the work by
E1000: dozens of male and female characters,
as appropriate, side by side without a single
gap between them.

Tuesdays to Saturdays from 11:30 am to 2:30
pm and from 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm. Sundays
from 11:30 to 3:00 pm.
At Espacio Espora you can find merchandise
and clothes inspired by graffiti and skateboarding, but its main appeal is its outdoor wall, that
is regularly covered by interventions of artists
such as Alberto de Pedro, Frágil, Pez or Djlu.

Schedule: currently, Sundays from 12:00 to
14:30.
This site has opened its doors as a space for
people to get together, to work and to have fun
among the neighbours of Lavapiés. Its walls,
inside and outside have become the perfect
medium for urban artists such as Ruina, Alberto de Pedro or E1000ink.

Spanish cinema is perhaps the most powerful in the world, but it
has portrayed, at times very skillfully, a feel for our society: craftiness, pretence, passion, and at times, otherworldliness.

DU
JIMINA SABA

When we watch these films, it is difficult to recognise the streets
and buildings. That is it? They help us fathom the changes that
have taken place across the city.
It is impossible to summarise here all the films that were filmed in
Madrid, so we have merely tried to pick those occurring in places
that may be interesting both for film buffs and laymen. We hope
both groups will discover new elements in these recommended
spots (on celluloid or brick).

The ‘timo de la estampita’, a con trick with
banknotes that only hurts those with an evil
heart, is carried out by Toni Leblanc in the
stretch from Alfonso XII (the Retiro’s Park exit)
up to Atocha Railway Station. Note: Ethnology
Museum on the way, Atocha microclimate (naturally it did not exist in the film), the offices of
the Lawyer’s Association, and the mansions on
Alfonso XII which have gradually disappeared
to make way for five-star hotels.

The couple comprised of Mary Carrillo and
José Luis López Vázquez realise they have
aged during their courtship in Las Cuevas del
Sésamo, located at Príncipe Street, 7. Note: In
the film you see young couples dancing, but at
present, on the ground floor of this legendary
bar, everyone sits down to drink wine. Even
so, don’t miss it.

The cry of “Water me!” by Carmen Maura
takes place in the Cuartel del Conde Duque,
Conde Duque Street, 9, in 1987, right when it
was being refurbished. Note: If you find no city
employee to water you, regional newspaper
and are available along with periodicals, video,
music and book libraries, exhibitions, and in the
summer, highly recommendable concerts. All
in one place!

The Leguineches leave their country estate
with their debts to move into the Casa de Linares, in Plaza de Cibeles. Note: When the film
was shot, the palace was in ruins (the interiors
are real) as well as the back garden. Also,
by the way, this is where the ghosts were, in
theory.

This tale of avarice ends at the Bar El Oso y
el Madroño, (De la Bolsa, 4) a small place for
drinks and tapas where you will be treated well
and where you will wonder how they managed
to get the whole crew into such a narrow passage. Note: This is next to Pontejos. Make the
most of it and go buy buttons. Peak hours are
from 11 am to 2 pm. Old ladies will squash you
between frills and lace. Watch out.

Although the real Aguacates is now a brothel
on the Castellana, the imaginary Aguacates is
the youth disco But, next to Pachá, on Barceló
Street, 11. Note: If you decide to go into But,
bear in mind the interior shots were filmed at
a discotheque in the outskirts. Yet if you insist,
do not wear sports shoes, or very long hair, or
looking scruffy. They will not let you in.

This is not a film, but a modest restaurant. The
reason it is on this list is because for decades
it has been the meeting point of filmmakers
(Trueba, Chávarri), musicians (Javier Krahe
is a regular) and politicians. It is currently
endangered since its closing down has been
ordered, on San Roque Street, 18. Note: If you
are going to eat, be patient, they take a long
time. It is a family business and the meals are
cooked in a wood oven.
This is not a film either, but you will have heard
of it. On Paseo de Recoletos, 21 is this establishment where the most prominent figures
of our cinema have gathered every afternoon.
It is not unusual to see Manuel Aleixandre
around. Note: Go inside rather than to the outdoor tables. Many people come here to write
hoping for a bit of luck, but we can’t make any
guarantees.

María Esteve, as a somewhat cloying girl in
love, does a dance number next to a bunch
of primary school children at the Museum of
Natural Science, located on Paseo de la Castellana (José Gutiérrez Abascal Street, 2). The
place has not changed a bit in decades. It is
still absolutely charming. Note: The Museum,
although not very well known, has an interesting taxidermy collection. Also, it is next door
to the Residencia de Estudiantes, where people
like Buñuel or J.R. Jiménez spent some time.

The mansion where Ana lives worrying about
her powers is on María de Molina Street, 13.
Note: The swimming pool is still there, as well
as the whole house. You can go in now since it
is the IE Business School.

Although obvious, when you cross Plaza de
Callao, remember Jose Mari and Monsignor
hung themselves from the Schweppes sign, in
the most memorable scene of Spanish fantasy
cinema. Note: Plaza de Callao is where urban
tribes hang out. If you want to make friends,
this is your chance.

The recent demise from the Madrid Gran Vía of the historic games arcade Piccadilly (which even had bumper cars in its basement) could very well be considered the symbol of the disappearance from the streets of the capital of a type of establishment
which is one 100% urban and linked to the 80s, and which will
never return. Turned into collectibles, they are restored and kept
away from the public. These recreation machines (both arcade
videogames and pinball machines) have disappeared from the districts of Madrid, making way in the best cases for gambling halls
and Type B machines (slot machines). We have traced a few of the
surviving halls, and although it is impossible by now to find pinball
machines or first generation ones such as Pac-Man or Space
Invaders, and although little by little the languid and cold digital
gaming machines are taking over the space previously reserved
for electronic entertainment, a handful of surprises such as those
below still survive.

A lonely basement corner is occupied by classic
machines such as Pang, Time Crisis II, Virtual
Tennis 2, Sega Rally 2 and Tekken 3 (some
in their original case) and some second-type
pinball machines (with many broken flippers and
lights) such as World Challenge Soccer.

An enormous game hall with notable surprises.
All shooting and driving machines are in their
original states (Tekken 5, Daytona USA 2,
Outrun 2, the complete Time Crisis and House
of the Dead sagas) and there are surviving
pinball machines of Indiana Jones and Lord of
the Rings.

This club right in the middle of Malasaña conceals within its walls no less than a Super Pang
machine, the game of bursting giant balls that
was all the rage in our country in the early
90s. Until very recently, the bar had a recreation machine of the legendary Tetris.

Almost completely converted into slot machines, a couple of pinball machines still survive
inside: a spectacular homage to Elvis Presley
and another one inspired by the film Congo.

SOL PARK

Calle Mayor, 1

7

The regular string of shooting and driving
machines (the House of the Dead saga, Time
Crisis 4), a few modern pinball machines (Elvis, Ripley’s Believe or Not and Revenge from
Mars) and two surprises: the super classic
Metal Slug 3 and the wonderful fighting game
X-Men Vs. Street Fighter.

The usual repertoire (shooting, driving), with a
few surprises: the pinball machines Pirates of
the Caribbean and Terminator 3, the Martiankiller Xevious 3D/G, and the legendary Puzzle
Bobble and the most enjoyable Crazy Taxi, with
its spectacular original case intact.

In a corner of this pub near Prosperidad devoted to music from the 80s is the colourful
Addams Family pinball machines, which was
very popular in Spain in the mid-90s.

CENTENARIAN TAVERNS OF ‘MADRi’
In 1600 in Madrid (population 17,000) its chroniclers said: “Madrid is a fierce city. Between old and new, it has 300 taverns and
a single bookshop”; and it is a real miracle that the ones listed here
are still in operation in their original look and decor.
This guide is only for tapas, normally at the bar; average prices;
some of no special gastronomic interest, unless otherwise noted.
It is possible to get a meal in nearly all of them, or they have a
restaurant attached, but that is not the point.

Age: 182.
The oldest one in Madrid; they keep the glass
which Alfonso XII used to drink from during his
nights in town, given its proximity to the Royal
Palace. In its heyday, it was the meeting point
of local bohemians and literati.

Age: 179
The bullfighter Antonio Sánchez received the
tavern from the family of its founder, the picador Colita, and after more than 20 bull thrusts,
he devoted himself to running the tavern. The
painter Ignacio Zuloaga held his art gatherings here and Antonio Díaz-Cañabate made
it immortal with his book Historia de una Taberna, Espasa-Calpe, in the popular Austral
collection. Its toilet is famous for the ring it has
to hold on to in order to be able to push harder.

Age: 170
The first restaurant opened in Spain, as we
know it today: fixed price, written menu and
separate tables, born in France 50 years
earlier, as a result of the fall into disgrace of
nobility, after the French Revolution, cooks and
servants had to fend for themselves.
Just enjoy the shop and help yourself to some
consommé from the authentic period Russian
samovar, together with some of the delicate
savoury appetizers in its warm display case.

Age: 149
There is a plaque on the door commemorating
the foundation of the PSOE in this tavern in
1879. Always full; don’t miss the battered cod,
with the traditional spillover of people onto the
street.

highest number of fatally injured in Spain until
11th March 2004, and which the PSOE did not
condemn at the time. 30 years later, the Madrid Council changed the name of the street
from Mayor to Mateo Morral, and demolished
the enormous monument erected in honour of
the 24 killed. The current monument was later
raised by Franco.

Age: 117
The owners that come from a wine region in
Toledo with the same name, had at one point,
up to 30 establishments such as this one to
sell their wines and which over time, paradoxically, became one of the best places in “Madrí”
to enjoy imported keg beer, including its unbeatable dark draught Guinness.

Age: 103
Highly appreciated are its very economical
servings of grilled shrimp and the sweet wine
EL ABUELO, which used to be given to the elderly as medicine. Today, the place has fallen
into decline, compared to the popularity it once
had.

Age: 100.
Opposite the Royal Palace survives this establishment with its original coloured tiles, which
has inspired legends and typically Madrilenian
tales. Aged oloroso wines, dry and sweet,
always accompanied by a biscuit. Famous for
its torrijas (sweet fried bread).
Tel. 91 559 53 32. From 10 am to 3 pm and
from 5.30 pm to 11 pm. Saturdays until 1 am.
Closed on Wednesdays.

One of the most typical and peculiar places;
dark and aged, a journey back in time. When
you go in you start imagining members of
the militia defending ‘Madrí’ from Franco’s
bombings. An Englishman always drops by,
following in the steps of Hemingway. They
only sell fine wines, sherries…there are no soft
drinks or beer. Careful about taking pictures
inside...

The Cañada Real Galiana is an old transhumance road that currently has over two thousand homes and nearly forty thousand
inhabitants across an area of fifteen kilometres. The first constructions date back to the 60s, when the residents of nearby
townships (Vallecas and Getafe, among others) built small country
homes there. Over time, the settlement has grown and its configuration has become increasingly complex. There is a significant
population of old residents, which have been joined by immigrants,
both national and foreign, mainly Moroccan and Romanian. Drug
dealing and construction businesses on public land coexist in the
area of the Cañada Real, shanties and detached houses, illegal
hotels and country homes, etc.

Drug Market
Cañada Real
Located in a small stretch at the entrance of the
Valdemingomez road is Madrid’s drug supermarket. After the closing of the Barranquillas
and other slums, the Madrid Council and police
have transferred the drug dealing market to this
area with the aim of stigmatising and degrading
this territory.

PAU (Urban
Development Plan)
Los Berrocales.
Near the Vallecas PAU and sector 6 of the
Cañada. This PAU together with another four
(Valdecarros, Cañaveral, Los Ahijones and Los
Cerros) are part of major urban interventions
in this territory. These urban developments are
the cause of the pressure suffered over the last
year by the residents of the
Cañada.

Cañada letters
Sign comprised of separate letters located upon
one of the hills near the Cañada. This project
included in the No State project was conducted
by the Group Todo por la Praxis, with the aim of
making the situation in the Cañada Real significant and visible.

Football
field stands
Located at the facilities of the association El Fanal. This project is part of No State, led by Santiago Cirugeda and his team Recetas Urbanas in
collaboration with the Groups Democracia and
Todo por la praxis